“Hiss, hiss...”
A bright green venomous snake slithered out from the corner of the damp corridor.
Its triangular head recoiled slightly before launching forward like a spring.
Rosie swung her left hand, sweeping the crab-shell pot outward like a massive shield.
Bang!
The dark snake was struck dead-on mid-air and slammed into the corridor wall. Its head shattered instantly, and its body slid down the wall, twitching a few times before falling completely still.
Without even lowering the pot, Rosie casually swung her sword with her right hand, slicing off the head of another brightly colored snake that had lunged from the side.
“Yah!”
The dwarf's voice came from behind her left. He swung his axe in a wide arc, cleaving several snakes into halves at once.
“This place is practically a snake nest!” The dwarf shook the snake blood off his axe.
“Be careful not to get bitten. I don't want to carry you around again,” Rosie warned.
The dwarf replied confidently, “Don't worry, these little guys can't hurt me.”
"War Technology Experimental Center"—that was the name Rosie had seen at the entrance.
The scale of this place was much larger than the previous research center.
Rosie had reaped a bountiful harvest from the Biological Research Center.
So when she saw the name "War Technology Experimental Center," she had decided to come here without the slightest hesitation.
And when the dwarf heard the name, his eyes lit up as well, saying he wanted to broaden his horizons.
The good news was that the gates to the War Technology Experimental Center were not sealed.
The bad news was that while they could enter, other things had already made themselves at home long ago.
The first floor of the experimental center was already in a semi-swamp state. The ground was covered in standing water and thick mud; stepping in it would submerge one's feet up to the calves.
Dense vines hung from the ceiling beams, and rustling sounds came from the undergrowth from time to time.
Just on this floor alone, Rosie and the dwarf encountered quite a few swamp creatures.
Fortunately, they got through without any real danger.
However, because the first floor was almost entirely swampy, they found nothing of value.
Every room was flooded with water and mud, with ruined, rotted equipment half-submerged in the mire. Aside from getting their hands dirty, they found absolutely nothing.
Only then did the two of them proceed to the second floor.
The second floor was in much better condition than the first, but it was still overgrown with moss and vines, with signs of snake activity everywhere.
“This area is heavily eroded. There probably isn't anything good here either, right?” the dwarf muttered, his eyes scanning the corners of the walls as he unconsciously gripped his axe tighter.
He sounded nonchalant, but in truth, he was still very wary of poison.
Although dwarves possessed robust constitutions, they were not completely immune to all toxins.
He had no desire to experience the feeling of his entire body turning blue again.
“Let's find a clean spot to rest first before deciding what to do next,” Rosie said.
“Forget about this floor. There are too many venomous snakes,” the dwarf said firmly.
Rosie nodded. “I was thinking the same. The hall ahead should have a passageway leading upstairs. Let's go.”
The two of them walked through a winding corridor and arrived at a spacious hall.
On one side of the hall was a wide stone staircase that ascended to the upper floors.
Just as Rosie reached the entrance of the hall, she suddenly stopped.
“What's wrong?” The dwarf immediately became alert upon seeing her stop.
“...A snake,” Rosie's voice dropped.
“Isn't it normal to have snakes—”
The dwarf cut himself off mid-sentence because, following Rosie's gaze, he saw the snake too.
A massive snake.
It had a colossal body, at least a dozen meters long, covered entirely in dark green scales.
But that wasn't the main point. The main point was that this snake had three heads.
Three heads, each as thick as a water bucket.
Six slitted pupils locked onto the two at the entrance of the hall. Bright red forked tongues flicked in unison from its three mouths, hissing loudly.
“Why is there a hydra here?” the dwarf asked in surprise.
He had seen this creature in the Explorers Association's bestiary; it was said to only exist in remote, uninhabited regions.
No sooner had he spoken than the three-headed serpent launched its attack.
The middle head suddenly opened its massive maw. A cloud of green mist billowed deep within its throat before being spat out with a loud whoosh.
A thick, noxious cloud of venomous mist surged toward them, carrying a pungent odor.
“Get back, I'll handle it!” Rosie shouted.
The dwarf did not hesitate and turned to run.
Rosie, however, charged straight into the venomous mist.
The toxic mist enveloped her entire body, causing faint hissing sounds to emit from the surface of her plate armor, but she felt absolutely nothing.
“Hiss, hiss, hiss!”
Seeing that its venomous mist was ineffective, the three-headed serpent hissed sharply.
Twisting its massive body, it lunged toward Rosie. The middle head opened its cavernous maw, snapping at her torso with two scythe-like fangs.
Rosie raised the crab-shell pot in front of her to meet the strike.
Clang!
A resounding crash echoed through the empty hall.
The serpent's fangs bit down on the crab-shell pot, sending sparks flying in all directions.
Two shallow indentations were left on the surface of the pot, but it was not pierced.
Rosie was pushed back two steps by the impact, but she swung her sword with her right hand at the same time. The meteoric iron sword drew an arc, slicing a long gash along the side of the serpent's head.
Fresh blood welled from the wound and trickled down its scales.
“Hiss, hiss, hiss!”
Thrashing in pain, the three-headed serpent attacked with its left and right heads simultaneously. Both heads gaped their massive jaws, snapping at Rosie from both sides.
Rosie fiercely hurled the crab-shell pot.
The heavy crab-shell pot spun through the air and slammed hard against the left head.
The collision of the shell and the head produced a dull thud, knocking the left head aside.
At the same time, Rosie kicked off the ground, launching herself like an arrow from a bow toward the side of the three-headed serpent.
Raising the meteoric iron sword high above her head, she used the momentum of her Charge to deliver a ferocious downward slash.
A flash of sword light gleamed.
The right head fell to the ground with a thud, blood gushing from the stump and staining a large patch of the surrounding floor red.
The severed head even snapped its jaws twice on the ground.
“Hiss, hiss!”
The now two-headed serpent let out a shrill screech. Its massive body writhed as its remaining two heads locked onto Rosie, a dark green glow rising from the depths of their throats.
Two globs of viscous venom spat out simultaneously, hitting Rosie instantly.
The venom poured over her plate armor, making a hissing, corrosive sound as the thick liquid seeped down the gaps of the armor plates.
Braving the venom, Rosie raised her meteoric iron sword, plunged it into the serpent's belly, and immediately activated her Charge skill.
Driven by the force of the impact, the blade sliced open a massive gash several meters long along the serpent's underbelly.
Warm blood sprayed everywhere, and internal organs spilled onto the floor.
The two-headed serpent let out a final screech before its colossal body crashed to the ground, twitching a few times before falling completely still.
Silence returned to the hall, leaving only the stench of blood and scattered organs.
Only then did the dwarf poke his head out from around the corner. Once he confirmed the danger had passed, he walked over quickly.
He glanced at the carcass of the three-headed serpent, then at Rosie, who was covered in venom and blood. “Are you... okay?”
Rosie didn't answer directly. Instead, she asked in a low voice, “Is our stalker still there?”
The dwarf hesitated before whispering back, “I can't sense them right now, but they should still be around somewhere.”
“To be able to keep up even after all this, they're clearly no ordinary opponent.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Rosie's body suddenly swayed.
She leaned on her sword for support, appearing incredibly weak.
“What's wrong with you?!” The dwarf was pale with fright.
“I'm fine, but I must be poisoned right now. Get it?” Rosie whispered.
The dwarf froze for a second, then immediately caught on to Rosie's plan. He shouted dramatically, “Hang in there! I'll find a place to treat the snake venom right away!”
Rosie put on a weak display, not forgetting to point at the carcass of the three-headed serpent. “This thing should be edible, right? Don't let it go to waste.”
The dwarf's lips twitched. “Of course we can, as long as we don't touch the heads and the venom glands...”
As he spoke, he deftly chopped off a clean piece of snake meat with his axe.
“Maybe this snake meat can neutralize the poison!” he added, deliberately raising his voice.
Then, retrieving the crab-shell pot, the dwarf supported Rosie. Pretending they had just survived a grueling battle, they made their way up the stairs on the other side of the hall, step by step, toward the upper floor.
A long while passed.
A figure stepped out from the shadows in the corner of the hall.
She scanned her surroundings before walking over to the carcass of the three-headed serpent. Crouching down, she inspected the remains.
She dipped her dagger into some venom on the ground, brought it to her nose to sniff, and frowned slightly.
She looked in the direction where the footprints on the ground led, then vanished into the shadows once more.
Rate on N.U.
